Our Europe: An appeal for unity, democracy, solidarity

On the occasion of 60 years since the signing of the Treaties of Rome, we come together, aware that we have to change Europe in order to save it from disintegration, from social and environmental disaster, and from authoritarian regression.

The hopes and expectations of a great common heritage, built on achievements and advances in the areas of rights and democracy, are unraveling along with the social state.

In recent years — because of unfair treaties, austerity, financial dominion, recession, job insecurity, and discrimination of women and young people — inequality and poverty have grown dramatically in Europe.

Today we are at the crossroads: between the salvation of human lives or that of finance and banks; full social security, or the gradual reduction of universal rights; peaceful coexistence, or war; democracy, or dictatorship. Mistrust, fear and insecurity are growing. These feelings multiply racism, reactionary nationalism, walls, borders and barbed wire.

Another Europe is necessary, urgent and possible, and we must act to build it. We must denounce the policies that jeopardize its existence; we must require that supranational democratic institutions actually express the popular mandate and have adequate resources; we must respect the rights enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights; and we must defend the good that we have built, propose alternatives and fight to achieve them, both in the Mediterranean and beyond the Union.

It takes a brave and innovative project of European unity to ensure for everyone a livable future, founded on democracy and freedom, rights and equality, effective recognition of the gender dimension, social and climate justice, dignity and work, solidarity and hospitality, peace and environmental sustainability.

We must be able to transform the “Italians, British, French first” mentality into “everyone first” — a Europe that is north and south, east and west, native and immigrant, men and women.

We begin from here, from Rome, in unity and solidarity, to create a coalition that, beyond our differences in our continent and throughout the world, will be up to the challenge we face.

We invite you to join this appeal, to promote and enter into this common framework of events and dates in the coming months in Italy and throughout Europe, starting in Rome on March 23-25, to mobilize initiatives, meetings, actions and interventions in the community and create a large, unified convergence.